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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: field · chair · stick · swing · arm · bulb · toast · rash

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. rash — a series
  5. field — for sport
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. swing — music
  8. swing — to play on
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. toast — a drink to someone
  11. swing — in golf
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. field — a subject
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. chair — a leader
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. field — farmland
  19. toast — bread
  20. bulb — for light
  21. bulb — for light
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. arm — a part of something

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com